Mine Games! bESTology Week 4

Mine Games!  bESTology Week 4

As we dig deeper into Pay Dirt, our knowledge of the mining industry must heat up!

• Fact:  The deeper the mine, the hotter it gets.
• Fact:  Miners often have to travel two miles or more underground each day to get to their job.
• Fact:  No mine can be 100% robotic.  Humans are required for repairs and logistics.

 From pillars, to long walls to lift cages, jump aboard as we travel inside the earth!

Resources:

• Pioneering Underground Mining by Joy Mining Company
• Inside of a Mine.  Let’s go!
• Pillar Designs in Coal Mines
• Let’s take a ride into a mine
• Room and Pillar Mining – Wikipedia
• Room and Pillar Mining
• Long Wall Mining – Wikipedia
• Gold Facts and a Modern Day Gold Mine

Data Mining:  Mine Games!  Without using the internet or other reference materials, brainstorm the meaning of the following:

• Room and pillar
• Long wall
• Continuous miner
• Retreat mining
• Mantrap
• Coal face
• Slurry

Now research the meaning of each term listed above.  Earn one point for each correct answer!

Writing:  More Mine Games!  Design a board game.  Using the above list of resources, incorporate the following terminology into a board game:

• Mine entrance
• Room and pillar or long wall
• Safe room
• Ventilation system
• Lift cages or trains
• Coal or salt

Once your game is complete, share with others to expand their knowledge of the mining industry.

BEST Connection:  Let’s take Mine Games one step further and develop the board game into a BEST game.  Sketch a field that has a main entrance, room and pillar, safe room, ventilation system and a commodity to be mined, i.e. coal, salt, copper, gold, silver.

List various tasks the robot should accomplish and formulate a scoring system.  Discuss with your classmates the objective of the game and construct two strategic plans to obtain the highest score. 

Community Connection:  One more Mine Game! Create a list of how coal and salt are used in your community.  Beside each use, name a business or industry that is involved with each.  Compare your list with others.  Earn a point for each business/industry that others did not list.  Invite a guest speaker from your local power company to share how coal is used to generate electricity in your region. 

Bloom’s Taxonomy:  brainstorm, compare, construct, develop, discuss, formulate, incorporate, invite, list, name, research, share, sketch, use

Workforce Skills: reading, critical thinking, active learning, writing, learning strategies, career awareness

Copyright 2015 Friends of BEST in Alabama, Inc.